With 14 Democrats and 3 Republicans, the City Council’s vote was — SURPRISE! — 14-3.

The proceeds from the soda tax ostensibly will go to expand “early childhood education”. It is expected to raise about $91 million annually to be spent on expanding prekindergarten programs in the city; creating community schools; improving parks, recreation centers, and libraries; and offering a tax credit for businesses that sell healthy beverages.

Philadelphia’s 1.5-cent-per-ounce soda tax, the first such tax imposed in a major U.S. city, affects thousands of products – essentially anything bottled, canned, or from a fountain with either sugar or artificial sweetener added, with a few exceptions. That means a 12-oz bottle of regular or diet soda will have 18 cents added to its retail price, in addition to what Philadelphia (2%) and the state of Pennsylvania (6%) charge as sales tax.

That doesn’t sound too bad until you look at the receipt below, for a 10-pack of Propel Zero Berry Water Beverage Powder Mix (source: The Burning Platform).

The 10-pack was on sale for $5.99, $1 less than its regular price.

The beverage tax was $3.04, which is 51% of what the 10-pack costs (51% of $5.99 = $3.04).

Then add $0.72 sales tax, and the total cost of that 10-pack of flavored water comes to a whopping $9.75.

But if you had bought the same 10-pack a day ago, on December 31, you would have paid only $6.47 ($5.99 + 8% sales tax of $0.48). Today, however, the 10-pack costs you $3.28 more because of the beverage tax.

Chuck Andrews picked up a $1.77 gallon jug of tea, got home and looked at his receipt. He said: “When I read the receipt I’m like, ‘Wait a minute. I paid more in tax than I did for the product!’”. The tax on the $1.77 gallon of tea was $1.92 cents.

Philadelphia’s small businesses are getting an earful from customers about the higher prices and wonder what this will mean for their future. “The businesses take a hit with profits, the customers take a hit with payment, and it’s kind of a lose-lose in Philadelphia with this tax,” Mike Maziarz of Franzones said.

Many people are saying they will go out of Philadelphia rather than pay the hefty soda tax. Others, like Carl Saulsbury, say they will change what they buy: “So now I know. I’m buying water, water, water.”

22 responses to “Philadelphia in shock over 51% beverage tax”

This is a perfect example of how politicians want more and more, and exploiting the people to get it. They are money hungry and greedy. So, what can the people do? Refuse to buy anything bottled would be a good start, but beyond that, Philly needs to raise holy Hannah with those 13 democratic idiots on their council, and then vote them out!.

Not only is the city NOT going to get all that extra tax, but I will bet a whole lot of people will start buying their sugar tax related items out site of the city. while they are out side of the city buying their sodas bet they will also buy all the rest of their groceries there thereby paying MORE of their taxes to another city. That will being tax revenue DOWN in Philadelphia. Some so-called politicians are too stupid for their own good. maybe the voters will remember these idiots at the polls next time.

They think they are going to collect $millions in taxes/ Think again. People will go back to making tea and buying unsweetened drink mixes and just add sugar until their kids’ teeth grow socks!
They will make the “sugar problem” worse, or buy their beverages outside the city by the case.
Like RJ Johnson said. I’ll bet there will be “Beverage Barns” selling cases only of sodas and other Hyper-Tax items only by the case and doing great business, just outside the city! And “Near Beer” sales will explode.
Even the welfare crowd will revolt against this.
Does PA allow recall elections? If they don’t, in Philly the Social Justice Warriors will probably just shoot the City Council.
Dems and their “Social Experiments”,. LMAO! Jack the Minimum Wage and all the doofuses fired that can’t produce the value of their wages, and now this.
Isn’t Socialist Totalitarian Micromanaging great! MSTMG! Go, LibTARDs!

Nothing new, from Nov. 2016: “Voters and lawmakers in five municipalities such as San Francisco and the county that includes Chicago approved special taxes on sugary drinks last week, with advocates saying the victories point to a change in public attitudes and the beginnings of a movement. What’s also changed, though, is that they’re now backed by billionaire Michael Bloomberg, who as mayor of New York lost a bruising fight to limit the size of sugary drinks.”http://www.seattletimes.com/business/billionaires-put-pop-in-advocates-push-for-soda-taxes/

We have had an alcohol tax in Chicago and they just recently implemented a beverage tax on anything that contains sugar. The city claims it needs the revenue to fix its worker pension problem by leavying it on the tax payers, but the politicians are the ones that caused the problem by not property funding the pension system in the first place. I

Internet buzz is The HildaBeast is going to run for Mayor of New York City! And we thought they couldn’t do worse than DeBlasio! LOL! “Killery” can beat “Commie” at ‘Crooked Malfeasance’ easy, and probably at ‘General Incompetence’ and ‘Stupid Misfeasance’!
At least the UN won’t argue about leaving NYC after she turns it into Beirut!
About a year after she wins, we’ll have to build a wall around it. Then just turn the lights off.

Oh! Well, just think of all the plastic that will not go into making containers if people just start making their own tea and soft drinks at home in a glass pitcher . . . at least that would be a good thing. The thing that is so amazing is that these bozos truly think they are doing a great thing with all this “social engineering” . . . it’s not even like they are attempting to get kids off sugar drinks–because they are taxing diet drinks also. This makes WATER sound like the perfect drink for all occasions. How is it that these morons think they can do things like this and that all the sheeple will just fall in line and go along with it???? I personally would bust my buttons to avoid paying one cent towards their tax, and I am sure that there are many other people who will do the same. The next thing that needs to happen is . . . throw these fools out of office. If they get away with this tax, you can bet there will be other taxes to follow . . .

“Many people are saying they will go out of Philadelphia rather than pay the hefty soda tax. Others, like Carl Saulsbury, say they will change what they buy: “So now I know. I’m buying water, water, water.”
The true purpose for taxes is revealed in this statement. Social engineering. Taxing something changes your behavior every time. They have always known it and now you do too.
Stop voting these social engineers into public office. Both dems and repubs. Just because the repubs got it right this time does not mean they are not guilty of this in other areas too.

“Childhood education …,” its for the children, how dare anyone complain! Calm down, have some tap water supplemented with ADA and FDA endorsed chemicals. We are creating a Globalford society. And, with more government day care, the more time you will have.

since nobody is going to be buying sodas, how much tax revenue do they expect to get? That amount oughta really expand early childhood indoctrination….I mean education.
Tax=confiscation=redistribution=dependence=higher taxes=repeat……

That stuff is swill anyway. Not that I think taxes are good, they’re not. And of course the bureaucrats will whine next year they don’t have enough moooooooney and want more taxes. It will never stop. The bureaucrats are the ones who need to be held accountable. ALL of them. They are the problem, not the solution and they are self-perpetuating. They are what Alexander the Great kept in place as he conquered other countries. They are what destroy Democracies and Republics.